- Rainy weather has caused state and county agricultural officials to extend the deadline for cotton farmers to plow down their fields as part of a statewide pest-eradication program.
From the Fresno Bee:
Rainy weather has caused state and county agricultural officials to extend the deadline for cotton farmers to plow down their fields as part of a statewide pest-eradication program.
Each year after harvest, California growers are required to shred their fields of cotton stalks and disc them into the ground to prevent the damaging pink bollworm from gaining a foothold in the spring.
But the annual battle against the bollworm has been delayed this year because of rainy weather. Muddy conditions make it difficult for growers to operate their tractors.
"There are some people who can't get into their fields right now. It is a mess," said Don Cameron, a Fresno County cotton grower. "It is going to take a while for things to dry out."
